Ходжкин

"Hey guys! One captain is heading to the Rastport. They talk like he's carrying a big booty!"— Horwich ran his fingers into his long, greasy shaggy hair. There was a hint in his voice. "Big booty, huh? Interesting. If we can capture her... will it count against our debt?" From all this talk about the loot, Porter's eyes lit up. "Really? Wait a minute… This captain… What did you say his name was?" — it seemed that Porter suddenly remembered something. "Some kind of… Hodge or something like that," Horwich tried to recall the details. "Hodge or something like that? You mean, Hodgkin? Oh heaven! Hodgkin! In the blink of an eye, the fire in old Porter's eyes went out, and a chill ran down his spine. "Are you kidding? Haven't you ever heard of Hodgkin?! No other name strikes more fear into the hearts of the sailors of Esperia! All the captains are afraid of him, and you don't even know his name?!" Horwich and Thorne shook their heads and said in one voice: "No, you've never heard of such a thing. " "And you also call yourself pirates... It would be nice for you to find out who Hodgkin is, and quickly!" — grabbing a mug with amber rum, Porter took a long sip to moisten his throat. "Do you know who is the richest pirate in Esperia? To answer, you will have to think. But if you ask, which of the Esperian pirates is the most famous? That's for sure, it's Hodgkin. No one would dare take that title away from him. He started out as a simple sailor aboard a privateer. Over time, his audacity increased, or maybe he was always a scoundrel, but, anyway, thanks to his ingenuity and impudence, he quickly made a name for himself in the Rastport. It was long before the three of us showed up here. He attacked other people's ships, regardless of how much bigger they were than his own, bearing the name "Immortal". Where others would have fled with their tails between their legs, Hodgkin enthusiastically rushed forward!" "Pirates like us, constantly indulging in vices and drunkenness, have enough opportunity to pay off debts, but Hodgkin wanted to become no less than the most famous pirate of Esperia. Whether he will be admired or cursed, he doesn't care." Porter's mind seemed to be somewhere far away as he looked at the booze in his glass. "Success is not a gift of fate. To rely on her means to give up," to hear such philosophical arguments from the mouth of Thorne was both funny and scary at the same time. "Hodgkin's House is not some port town like Rastport, but the whole ocean. If you remember those times..." "Stop! I'm begging you! Horwich's shrill voice rang out. — Just stop it! Your miserable stories make my ears wither!" "Once the whole Rastport knew him. Hodgkin assembled a large team and set sail on the Immortal. Then he got rid of the shackles of fear and began to do terrible things without fear of retribution. They say no one managed to escape from the "Immortal". They say that when he captures a ship, he selects the strongest people for his crew, and kills the rest. Sometimes he forces recruits to execute their former comrades.He also likes to hang the captain's head on the mast in honor of the victory. Her blood drips onto the deck, and Hodgkin throws her body overboard to be eaten by sharks. In addition, Hodgkin made alliances with some captains, but he also ruined them, and in the most terrible way. The mast of his ship is soaked with their blood. How disgusting." Porter tilted his head back and took a long sip of rum, as if gathering his courage. "He has fun too severely. Have you heard about how people are forced to walk around the board blindfolded? Yes, it was his idea. The poor devils don't know that sharks are already waiting for them in the water! Gods, I can't imagine their horror when they walk on a thin board, and under them is a bottomless ocean." Horwich swallowed nervously. "As for his great booty, Hodgkin will never give away where it is. He's too cunning and would never keep her on board, in some dusty hold. He would choose a distant island in the middle of the ocean and hide everything there. If you believe the stories, then when he goes to hide his treasures, he takes a sailor with him. He says the prey is too heavy to carry alone. The sailor does not suspect that he is destined to be buried with the loot, so that none of the living can tell where it is hidden. That's why Hodgkin is always recruiting new people to the team." "I think being a petty pirate is not so bad— you can carouse, eat and get drunk to your heart's content," Thorne again issued one of his slightly contradictory statements. "Gods in heaven, every scumbag unlucky enough to be on Hodgkin's team must be shaking with fear every second," Porter added. "We... we're going to be okay, aren't we? That is… Porter and Thorne thought they heard something strange in Horwich's voice, and they stared at him with hostility. "Just… Hodgkin arrived at the Rastport to replenish the team. Then he plans to go to Screaming Bay to steal some kind of relic, a soul purification retort, it seems. The grave-borns appreciate her highly, but... we shouldn't worry… I mean, I've heard it from others. Maybe it's all lies ..." — Horwich clearly did not finish, fearing the consequences. "Damn it! Why didn't you say anything earlier?!" snarled Thorn, and there was horror in his voice. "This is crazy! Hodgin will sweep away anyone who gets in his way, and the Screaming Bay— who would have thought that this bastard would want to go there! Let others go camping with this scoundrel! Whoever he chooses, we'd better get out of here in a hurry!" Saying this, Porter jumped to his feet and ran away. "Only the demon and I know where the treasure is buried." Hodgkin